The role of vitamin D in migraine, from mechanism to therapy: literature review

Abstract

Migraine is a neurological condition that is the third highest cause of disability in the population under 50 years old. The Increasing incidence of migraine will affect the quality of life and increase the financial burden on the patient. Vitamin D is one of the supplementation agents that is thought to be associated with headaches and has anti-inflammatory and antioxidant effects. There is an increasing prevalence of vitamin D deficiency in migraine patients but there is no consensus regarding the provision of vitamin D supplementation as a complementary therapy in migraine. This article aims to explain the role of vitamin D in the mechanism of headache, especially migraine, and vitamin D supplementation therapy as a complementary therapy in migraine. Vitamin D is thought to play a role in the pathogenesis of headache through several mechanisms, namely as an anti-inflammatory effect, regulates the immune system, reduces nitric oxide (NO) levels, suppresses prostaglandin synthesis, and is associated with changes in several neurotransmitters such as glutamine, noradrenaline, dopamine, and serotonin. Several studies have reported that vitamin D supplementation in patients with migraine can improve the frequency of headache attacks. Most migraine patients can experience vitamin D deficiency. Vitamin D supplementation is also thought to reduce the frequency of headache attacks in migraine patients. However, further research is still needed to confirm these results.